Dinotots Beach Nursery

Dinotots Beach Nursery

Unique reference number (URN): 2800118 Address: Dave Stephens Centre, The Links, Blyth, Northumberland, NE24 3PL Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registered with Ofsted: 19/07/2024 Registers: EYR, CCR, VCR Registered person: Dinotots Daycare Limited

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Safeguarding standards met

The safeguarding standards are met. This means that leaders and/or those responsible for governance and oversight fulfil their specific responsibilities and have established an open culture in which safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively identified, acted upon and managed. As a result, children are made safer and feel safe.

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How we evaluate safeguarding

When we inspect settings for safeguarding, they can have the following outcomes:

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How we evaluate safeguarding

Met: The setting has an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not met: The setting has not created an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not all legal requirements are met.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Leaders support staff effectively to develop their knowledge and skills. They work with parents to understand children's individual needs and any barriers to learning that children may face. They identify children who may benefit from further support. They provide adaptations to their environment and routines to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. For example, they provide sensory toys to support children's individual needs. They use funding effectively, for instance, to provide additional adults to work with children during beach sessions to ensure children's safety.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Leaders monitor the achievement that children make against the targets they have set. Staff work well with a range of professionals to help them to support children effectively.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Children who are known or previously known to children's social care receive effective support. Staff communicate with parents and professionals to ensure that children and families receive the help and support they need. For example, they provide support to families on budgeting and cooking.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Staff support children who are disadvantaged well. They use funding effectively to help children to access the full curriculum. For example, they provide puddle suits and wellington boots so all children can access the beach curriculum.

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Achievement Needs attention

Toddlers sometimes lose focus in their learning and do not have consistent opportunities to deepen their knowledge or skills. Interruptions, such as leaving the beach when older children need the toilet, do not give younger children enough opportunities to sustain their learning.

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Achievement Needs attention

Older children progress well through the curriculum, particularly those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. They develop the skills to support them in the next stage of their learning. They communicate confidently with their friends and engage enthusiastically in stories that staff read. They count as they play in the water. Children help staff to count everyone before they leave the building and as they walk to the beach. Children develop their physical skills. Older children navigate the stairs as they go outside. Children develop their independence skills over time, for example, as they learn to put on their puddle suits and wellington boots.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Needs attention

Toddlers are welcomed into activities, but they do not always experience the same level of engagement as older children. When staff focus on preparing older children for activities, toddlers sometimes wait in highchairs for prolonged periods which can leave them feeling restless and less involved. This impacts on their attitudes to learning as they have fewer opportunities to become involved in their play.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Needs attention

Leaders have clear expectations for children's behaviour, which they consistently reinforce. For example, before children go onto the beach, staff remind them of the rules. When children arrive at the beach, they sit on a low wall while staff carry out risk assessments. Staff also remind children that they must sit down to eat their food. They provide support to children who face barriers to their learning to manage their feelings and emotions, encouraging them to take time to calm down.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Needs attention

Children have effective relationships with other children. They can work alongside other children and are beginning to share and take turns. Staff patiently support children who find it difficult to share. Stories and clear and consistent messages, such as 'kind hands' help children to learn the expectations.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Needs attention

Staff work with parents to help them to ensure their children attend regularly and benefit from the routines on offer.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention

Although leaders have trained staff in safe eating procedures and have policies in place, they have not monitored this enough to ensure that staff follow these consistently. Occasionally staff complete other tasks, such as preparing food, which reduces the levels of focused supervision. This means that children do not always benefit from the calm, attentive mealtimes that leaders aim to provide.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention

Staff help children to understand how they can keep themselves healthy. They learn to wash hands before eating and after being on the beach. Children enjoy a wealth of physical activity as they walk to and from the beach and play on the beach or collect stones. They talk to children about healthy diets and provide healthy home-cooked food.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention

Staff find out about children's individual dietary requirements before children start. They make adaptations to routines, such as mealtimes and sleep, to support all children, including those who face barriers to their wellbeing. This includes the meals that they offer. Staff act swiftly to meet children's needs when disruptions to usual routines occur. For example, they source beach huts so younger children can still sleep when their usual room cannot be used.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Although babies are included in activities, their learning and experiences are not consistently prioritised. Sometimes, staff prioritise older children's needs and this occasionally impacts on toddler's experiences. They are not always able to explore and engage fully in their learning. For example, during beach visits, staff take younger children back to the nursery when older children need to go to the toilet. This interrupts their learning and limits their participation. Leaders have designed a curriculum that generally encourages children to be confident, resilient and prepared for the next stage in their learning. They ensure children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are included throughout. Children sgow positive attitudes to their learning. They enjoy playing in the play dough when they arrive. They particularly enjoy playing on the beach. Staff usually support children's communication and

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

language effectively. They get down to children's level and repeat and extend what children are saying. They usually make eye contact with children too. Staff read stories with enthusiasm. The expression they use engages children to join in. Children have a wealth of opportunities to develop their physical skills, they walk to and from the beach and enjoy building sandcastles and collecting stones. Children learn how to use tools, such as tongs and spoons to serve themselves their food, supporting their small muscle skills.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Leaders have provided staff with general training but they have not yet checked closely enough that key aspects of training are consistently followed. Training specific to the care and learning needs of children under 2 has also not been prioritised. This sometimes impacts on the experiences provided for these children. In addition, they have have not ensured that key messages, policies and procedures are consistently implemented.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Leaders generally identify the strengths and areas for development of the nursery. They are aware, for example, that staff need to develop their knowledge of working with children under the age of two years. They identify some professional development opportunities, including beach leadership qualifications. Leaders support staff wellbeing and provide support to ensure staff understand their role overall. They provide effective support to apprentices to ensure they develop the necessary knowledge and skills. Staff say that they feel well supported.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Staff work with parents to help them to understand where children are in their learning and how they can support children more effectively. Parents comment that the electronic programme that the nursery uses lets them know everything about their child's day.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Leaders work with a range of professionals that may be involved in children's care and learning. For instance, they gather information from other nurseries that children have attended to understand their individual needs when they first start. They liaise with professionals from health and social care to ensure children get any help they need.

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Compulsory Childcare Register requirements

This setting has met the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register.

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Register

When we check if settings meet the Compulsory Childcare Register requirements, they can have the following outcomes:

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Voluntary Childcare Register requirements

This setting has met the requirements of the voluntary part of Childcare Register.

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Register

When we check if settings meet the Voluntary Childcare Register requirements, they can have the following outcomes:

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Children under two years do not always benefit from well-thought-out learning experiences that support their unique needs so that they can flourish. This impacts on their enjoyment of the session. Children do not always benefit from sociable and well-supervised mealtimes.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Children arrive happily in the morning. They greet staff with enthusiasm and are keen to show the clothes they are wearing. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) greet staff with a smile and a gesture when they arrive. They demonstrate that they have good relationships with staff as they often seek out staff for a cuddle. Children learn how to keep themselves safe. For example, when staff say 'red light', children know that they need to stop and listen to staff because this signals potential danger. Children follow staff instructions carefully and come together on the beach to ensure they play away from other visitors.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Older children thoroughly enjoy the curriculum that is carefully planned to support their interests and stages of development. They develop skills to support them in the next stage of their learning. Children look forward to going to the beach after snack. When they arrive in the morning, they eagerly explore the texture of the play dough and sand. They play alongside their friends and begin to share the tools and equipment. Children are keen to find stones and natural 'treasure' on the beach that they can bring back to nursery. Children who face barriers to their learning or those with SEND progress well from their starting points.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Children attend regularly and this helps them to benefit from the consistent routines and expectations in nursery. For example, they eagerly line up ready to use the toilet or to leave the nursery for the beach. When staff say that they want to check that children are all present as they walk along the beach, children stop and willingly help to count.

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Next steps

To meet the requirements of the Early years foundation stage and Childcare Register the provider must take the following actions by the assigned date:

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Action Completion Date

review routines to ensure toddlers' learning and engagement is consistently prioritised, including during transitions and off-site activities 13/07/2026

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Action Completion Date

strengthen oversight of safe eating routines, so that staff maintain consistent and focused supervision during mealtimes and avoid tasks that take attention away from the children 30/06/2026

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Action Completion Date

ensure that staff receive training that includes the specific needs of children under 2 and should monitor practice to ensure training is applied consistently and has a positive impact on children's experiences. 16/07/2026

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with leaders, practitioners, special educational needs coordinator, children and parents during the inspection.

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Address:

Dave Stephens Centre The Links Blyth Northumberland NE24 3PL

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Address:

Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises

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Address:

Registered person: Dinotots Daycare Limited

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Address:

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:30 - 18:00

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Facts and figures used on inspection

This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.

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Age range of children at the time of inspection

We carried out this inspection under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of provision that is registered on the Early Years Register. The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children's learning, development and care, known as the early years' foundation stage.

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Exceptional

Practice is exceptional: of the highest standard nationally. Other settings can learn from it.

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Strong standard

The setting reaches a strong standard. Leaders are working above the standard expected of them.

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Expected standard

The setting is fulfilling the expected standard of education and/or care. This means they are following the standard set out in statutory and non ‑ statutory legislation and the professional standards expected of them.

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Needs attention

The expected standards are not met but leaders are likely able to make the necessary improvements.

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Urgent improvement

The setting needs to make urgent improvements to provide the expected standard of education and/or care.

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Urgent improvement

services providing education and skills for children and learners of all ages, and inspects and regulates services that care for children and young people.

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Urgent improvement

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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Urgent improvement

You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk . Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

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Urgent improvement

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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